Easy walks hint at wilder times

Back in the 1950s, Edmonds was still a small town and beaches were wild. County roads that led to gems like Picnic Point and Meadowdale Beach Park were a pleasant country drive, with houses few and far between. The Edmonds Salt Marsh was wild and unfettered, with marine life and occasional log- or driftwood-hopping contests with family or friends.

We returned to view the region through a hiker's eye and found the marsh had shrunk. Today a short boardwalk with overlooks provides views of the marsh, but I've been spoiled. I remember it as it was and I find myself grasping for adjectives to describe what is no longer there.

And as a hike, it fails. But if you do another hike in the region, it makes a pleasant side trip. Many birds still call it home, though it is surrounded by commercial buildings, sidewalks, parking lots and machinery gnawing away at a bluff at the southern end of the marsh.

Marina Beach Park is south of the Edmonds ferry dock and new to us -- it provides a nice setting for a picnic, with views across Puget Sound and an off-leash area for dogs, but nothing for hikers. However, there are several good hikes in the area.

Bracketts Landing, next to the ferry terminal, is a good example. When tides are low, you can hike north along the beach 4 1/2 miles to Meadowdale Beach Park or six miles to Picnic Point. If the tides are wrong, you can drive to Meadowdale Beach Park and still get in a respectable 2 1/2-mile hike (round trip) with beach access.

Meadowdale Beach Park is a favorite of locals but may not be well known to others. Locals have no trouble finding the park, but we missed a couple of turns. If you have never been there, you may want to allow extra time as driving to urban parks can sometimes be a route-finding challenge.

This is an upside-down trail -- the trail loses 450 feet as it descends Lunds Gulch to the beach. However, the beach is only one feature of this Snohomish County park. Also to be enjoyed and noted are huge cedar stumps from logging days and a variety of non-native trees flourishing near the picnic area, including a majestic Norway spruce.

The trail is wide and user-friendly. A few switchbacks lessen the grade, and benches are provided for those who want forest views or a breather -- or both. This trail was prettier than I anticipated. In early March, the lowland vegetation was just beginning to leaf out with a hint of Indian plum.

We found ourselves standing awestruck before a massive cedar stump with its telltale springboard notches. You'll find a few more giants scattered along the trail through the ravine.

The trail levels out at a footbridge over Lund's Gulch Creek, just short of a mile. From here a short loop can be made to and from the beach. The left-hand trail leads to the ranger's residence and disabled parking, then proceeds to the picnic area, lawns and restrooms.

The right-hand trail parallels Lund's Gulch Creek. The trails meet at a tunnel where the trail goes under the railroad tracks to the beach.

There is plenty of beach to hike on a low tide -- north toward Mukilteo or south to Edmonds. Consult a tide table; you'll need a tide of 3 feet or less to hike any distance along the beach in either direction.

If the tides are wrong, pull up a piece of driftwood and enjoy the scene. Watch the Mukilteo ferry come and go, the changing sunlight on the Olympic Mountains, and clouds of seabirds rising and falling near the shore.

At high tide it is tempting to hike along the railroad tracks, but don't. It is extremely dangerous and doing so is considered trespassing. We were there at high tide for a short time and at least a half-dozen freight trains hurtled by almost too close for comfort.

If tides are high, you still can hike south a short ways to pilings jutting up from the sand like a row of teeth. A little farther you'll spot four or five pilings offshore, each one adorned with a seabird.

A few days later we returned to Edmonds to hike north from Bracketts Landing toward Meadowdale Beach Park. The tide was going out and we were able to walk a couple of miles before we ran out of beach.

The tide was low enough that we spotted a few sea urchins in tide pools and an odd assortment of marine life: tubeworms, kelp, chitons, almost-perfect moon snail shells, beaten-up crab carcasses, barnacles as big as rotten molars, and vivid strands of seaweed in the sand. The gulls were hanging out and a flotilla of brant patrolled the water near the shoreline.

If you don't have enough time to hike to Picnic Point Park, a 54-acre Snohomish County park, you can drive there. Back in the 1950s, that was a lonesome beach, and we didn't have high expectations during a recent visit, but the beach looks pretty much as I remembered it, though humongous private homes loom over the parking lot and the Picnic Point Road. The park is well worthy of a picnic and, when tides are low, you can walk along the beach and ponder ancient pilings.

Karen Sykes / Special to the P-I

Hiker Bob Dreisbach tries to take in the scale of a huge cedar stump along a trail in Meadowdale Beach Park north of Edmonds.

Tired of the beach? If you have time, there's a little hike that packs a scenic punch in Yost Memorial Park and Pool, an Edmonds City Park. A scenic 1-mile trail wends its way into a deeply wooded ravine. A portion of the trail is on boardwalk, and though it is partially blocked by a blow-down, it shouldn't present a problem for most hikers.

In early March we met only one other hiker on the trail. The pool was closed for the season and that may account for the lack of hikers. Near the pool, gardens are bright with fat rhododendrons and azaleas and the robins are back.

Spring's here.

If you go

Getting there

Meadowdale Beach Park -- From Seattle, head north on Interstate 5 to Exit 183 (164th Street Southwest) and turn left on 164th. Continue 1.7 miles to 168th Street Southwest and Highway 99. Cross Highway 99, continue two blocks and turn right on 52nd Avenue West, then left on 160th Street Southwest, then right onto 56th Avenue West and left at 156th Street Southwest to the park entrance at the end of the road. There is a handicapped entrance on 156th Street Southwest. Call Snohomish County Parks at 425-388-6600 for details or visit the Web at www.co.snohomish.wa.us/parks/meadowdale.htm. For more information on Edmonds parks and a map, visit the Web at: www.ci.edmonds.wa.us/.

Bracketts Landing -- From downtown Edmonds, follow Main Street west to the Edmonds ferry terminal. Across the railroad tracks find Bracketts Landing (with parking) on the north side of the terminal at the end of Main Street. This is also a popular underwater marine park, so get an early start as this parking lot fills quickly.

Yost Memorial Park and Pool -- From downtown Edmonds, drive uphill on Walnut Street to the park entrance. You may be able to find parking along the border of the 54-acre park on Main Street as well. Locals also access the park from Main Street.

Picnic Point Park -- From Seattle, drive north on Highway 99 and turn left on Shelby Road, which becomes Picnic Point Road. Continue to the park (follow signs).

Trail data

Meadowdale Beach Park -- Three miles round trip, 450 feet elevation gain.

Bracketts Landing to Meadowdale Beach Park -- About nine miles round trip, no elevation gain.

Bracketts Landing to Picnic Point -- 12 miles round trip.

Yost Memorial Park -- One mile round trip, approximately 100 feet elevation gain.

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